The present invention relates to a wire winding system and more particularly to a wire winding system with a take-up spool at each of a plurality of stations and to means for effectively transferring wire continuously from a full spool to an empty spool at each station by use of a mobile transfer cart, which services a plurality of stations.
In a wire winding system used in the manufacture of insulated wire, a plurality of wires are ordinarily advanced continuously by capstan assemblies from an extruder or enameler to a take-up mechanism for each wire. Each capstan assembly operates at a substantially constant linear speed to draw a wire at substantially constant speed. The tension in the wire is maintained substantially constant.
To insure continuous operation of the manufacturing process, e.g., extrusion of the wire without breakage of the wire, it is common that the take-up mechanism operate continuously with successive or adjacent pairs of spools. When one spool is filled with wire, the wire is transferred or cutover to the adjacent empty spool. The full spool is removed and replaced with an empty spool. Examples of take-up mechanisms operable with pairs of spools are O'Grady 3,368,765, Brown 3,701,491, Mailleser 3,814,340 and Graham 4,808,971. While such take-up mechanisms are generally satisfactory, they require considerable floor space, since at each operating station, there are two turntables with a spool in place on each turntable. One spool is empty (idle) while the other spool is being filled with wire.
An object of the present invention is to provide an improved wire winding system having a plurality of stations, with only a single turntable at each station, thereby requiring about fifty percent less floor space as compared with prior wire winding systems having take-up mechanisms with a pair of turntables at each station.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a mobile transfer cart for effecting transfer of the winding of wire from a spool on a variable speed turntable at a station of a wire winding system to the mobile transfer cart while the full spool is exchanged for a empty spool on the variable speed turntable and for effecting transfer of the winding of wire back to the empty spool on the variable speed turntable.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved wire winding system including a plurality of stations with a single turntable at each station and a mobile transfer cart for enabling replacement of a full spool at a selected station with an empty spool at relatively high speeds (on the order of 1,100 feet per minute) on small wire filament.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an improved method utilizing a mobile transfer cart for changing spools in a wire winding system having a plurality of stations, with a single variable speed turntable carrying a spool at each station.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be made more apparent hereinafter.